argumentativeness
Tendency toward contention
Argumentativeness is a tendency to argue or dispute, especially over minor points.
The quality suggests someone who picks fights or challenges statements reflexively rather than letting things pass: His argumentativeness made every family dinner exhausting.
It carries a negative connotation—being argumentative is rarely a compliment.
Inclined to dispute
- belligerentHostile and eager to clash
- contentiousInclined toward disagreement
- pugnaciousInclined to quarrel
- truculentAggressively hostile disposition
antagonistic · confrontational · aggressive · hostile · provocative · disputatious · bellicose · irascible
Disagreement with authority
- contradictionOpposing claims, incompatible together
- oppositionActive resistance or dissent
- skepticismDisposition toward doubt
- naysayingExpressing persistent disagreement
gainsaying · objection · challenge · critique · refutation · rebuttal · negation · doubt
Verbal clash over differences
- conflictOpposition between parties
- discordLack of agreement
- controversyProlonged public disagreement
- quarrelAngry verbal dispute
bickering · squabble · wrangle · altercation · friction · contention · feud · strife
Reasoning through contradiction
- polemicsArt of controversial argument
- rhetoricArt of persuasive language
- oratoryFormal eloquent discourse
- disputationFormal argumentative exchange
cross-examination · rebuttal · deliberation · forensics · discourse · reasoning · logic · proposition
Art of persuasive language
- eloquencePersuasive verbal grace
- convincingAble to persuade
- compellingPowerfully engaging or persuasive
- persuasiveAble to convince others
suasion · advocacy · cajoling · coaxing · reasoning · appeals · inducement · lobbying
Firmly refusing to yield
- intransigentRefusing to compromise
- unyieldingRefusing to give way
- inflexibleUnable to bend
- uncompromisingRefusing to yield ground
headstrong · adamant · willful · mulish · bullheaded · obdurate · tenacious · dogged
quarrelsome
Inclined to dispute
- belligerentHostile and eager to clash
- contentiousInclined toward disagreement
- pugnaciousInclined to quarrel
truculent · antagonistic · confrontational · aggressive · hostile · provocative · disputatious · bellicose · irascible · cantankerous
dissent
Disagreement with authority
- contradictionOpposing claims, incompatible together
- oppositionActive resistance or dissent
- skepticismDisposition toward doubt
naysaying · gainsaying · objection · challenge · critique · refutation · rebuttal · negation · doubt · cynicism
dispute
Verbal clash over differences
- conflictOpposition between parties
- discordLack of agreement
- controversyProlonged public disagreement
quarrel · bickering · squabble · wrangle · altercation · friction · contention · feud · strife · clash
dialectics
Reasoning through contradiction
- polemicsArt of controversial argument
- rhetoricArt of persuasive language
- oratoryFormal eloquent discourse
disputation · cross-examination · rebuttal · deliberation · forensics · discourse · reasoning · logic · proposition · counterpoint
rhetoric
Art of persuasive language
- eloquencePersuasive verbal grace
- convincingAble to persuade
- compellingPowerfully engaging or persuasive
persuasive · suasion · advocacy · cajoling · coaxing · reasoning · appeals · inducement · lobbying
obstinate
Firmly refusing to yield
- intransigentRefusing to compromise
- unyieldingRefusing to give way
- inflexibleUnable to bend
uncompromising · headstrong · adamant · willful · mulish · bullheaded · obdurate · tenacious · dogged · pertinacious
argumentativenessagreeableness
Pleasant, cooperative nature
peacefulness · compliance · docility · acquiescence · amenability
argumentativenessagreement
Shared position between parties
cooperativeness · diplomacy · tactfulness · accommodation · amiability
argumentativenessagreement
Shared position between parties
diplomacy · tactfulness · nonconfrontation · acquiescence · deference
argue, argument, arguing, argued, arguments, argumentative, argues, arguable, arguably